"The cigar boom happened just as Internet sales started to become popular. That's what (led to success)."

In November 2011, New Global moved into a 25,000-square-foot building formerly occupied by Pro Tec Partitions in the Corporate Center.

The firm buys the cigars it sells from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Honduras.

"The cigars are kept in a 6,700-square-foot humidor that is kept at 70 degrees Fahrenheit," Fox said. "It is built of moisture-resistant greenboard sheetrock, like you'd use in a bathroom for humidity."

Keeping the cigars in that environment keeps them fresh.

"In this environment, the cigars last forever. They don't have a shelf life," Fox said. "They age like wine. The older they are the better. Most people like aged cigars. The different types of tobacco marry each other, wrapper binder and filler. When those elements stay together longer, they taste better."

Fox said cigars are all premium cigars, with an average price of $10 each.

"These are not the cigars you find in grocery stores or gas stations. (Customers) buy them by the box. The average order is $150," Fox said.

New Global's employees take customers' orders, and edit and publish a catalog that Fox said is sent to "tens of thousands of people" marketing the 6,500 items the company sells. The firm also takes advantage of social media like Facebook and Twitter to market and sell its cigars.

"We don't do any cold calls," Fox said. "The call center is all incoming calls. About 99 percent are men who call, and are usually very excited they are about to place their cigar order. It's kind of fun to be on the phones. They want to know what cigar is new that they can track."

Fox said about two-third of the orders are placed to the company over the Internet and one-third by phone, with 98 percent of sales to private consumers.

Fox said the firm is looking to diversify and expand. Part of that growth, he said, may come from retail stores the firm would develop.

"Maybe we would try to combine with an eating establishment," Fox said. "We could have multiple stores, with at least six or seven full-time jobs per store.

"We have 10 acres here, so we have room to expand," Fox said. "We're looking to get into other products. A skin care company will be placed in an unoccupied space in the next six months."

Ed Grossman, the firm's chief financial officer, said diversifying is a priority for the company.

"We're not going to depend on just one commodity," Grossman said. "As we add, we'll be hiring more and more. We are looking at other businesses which we can take advantage of with our shipping, marketing and purchasing facilities. We can bring another product in here and create more jobs with little overhead."

Fox said the company plans to hire five to 10 more web development people in the next six months.

"These are family-sustaining jobs," Fox said "There are marketing, technology, web development, purchasing, customer service, and IT (information technology, or computers). These are not minimum-wage jobs. People here make good money. We have several couples working here who are looking to buy houses in the area that weren't able to do that in New York."

Grossman said the firm has found the work ethic of local residents to be valuable. "They come to work, They appreciate their jobs. They are conscientious. They really care," he said.

Fox agreed.

"We find the labor force here is tremendous," he said. "We make an effort to keep everything nice and clean for the employees. This is the way we live. We live at home this way, and we live here this way. Everybody's neat. And productivity goes sky high."

New Global was recently nominated for two awards - the Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce's Small Business of the Year and the Curb Appeal Award for flowers and cleanliness by CAN DO Inc.

The Drums facility also contains a smoking lounge, complete with soft leather sofas, an area rug, and lamp lighting to allow customers to try out New Global's products

"We've had politicians, congressmen, local police, firefighters, lawyers, accountants, and people from all over the world in here," Fox said. "We've had customers drive from New England just to pick up a box of cigars because they want to see our place."

jdino@standardspeaker.com

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